Luke is Outside
by SoxBo
Summary: Post "Say Something" LL.


Luke is outside Lorelai's house pacing. Walking toward the front stairs and stopping right before the first step turning around mumbling to himself storming back toward town only to take three steps sigh and turn around and start the trip back to the stairs. Lorelai is upstairs looking out the window watching Luke walk back and forth. When she first heard him outside she was hopeful, and now watching him yo-yoing back and forth she was getting angry.

Lorelai takes a deep breath, wipes her eyes and heads down the stairs, when she reaches her front door; she sucks in one last breath through clinched teeth and turns the knob.

As she opens her door she is ready to yell at Luke to stop hanging outside her stoop and to just go home, but as she opens her mouth its Luke's booming voice that is heard "We're both reacting. I'm reacting to Christopher and your Mother. You're reacting to this town. And somewhere in all this reacting, nothing is being said."

Lorelai stands stunned, staring at Luke as he looks her straight in the eye and continues "I love you Lorelai. I have loved you for so long in so many different ways that – loving you is like breathing to me. I just do it. And I should have told you that. I just assumed you knew. And I shouldn't have assumed, because maybe if I had told you what I felt instead always just trying to show you, you wouldn't have reacted so desperately to my needed time to process.

Luke rushes on.

"At Doose's I didn't break up with you. I just wasn't ready to talk to you yet. And I couldn't see you were panicking – I had no idea about Taylor and those stupid ribbons, I just thought it was another god damn town festival. I didn't know we broke up until you called me your ex-boyfriend, I just thought we were fighting. And than I was shocked and you were going on about how I was out, I thought I was still in and I again stupidly assumed you knew I was still in, because you are just supposed to know how I feel."

Luke finally takes a breath and moves a step closer to Lorelai . Lorelai is still just standing there staring at him, not sure if she is dreaming this or if he is really ranting at her. But she doesn't have time to pinch herself as Luke starts talking again.

"At the wedding I felt like I got hit by a Mac truck. First it was your Mother and all her snide comments, than it was the actually ceremony watching you," he pauses and looks at her with so much love in his eyes, "you took my breath away, and than suddenly you were admitting to spending time with Christopher and hiding it. Then it was time for Christopher and his drunken proclamations. It was a lot to take in. And instead of stopping and talking to you I just shutdown. And I shouldn't have and I am sorry. But I needed my friend Lorelai to tell me I was being a jackass to my girlfriend Lorelai and that I should just tell her what I'm feeling."

As Luke says "girlfriend", Lorelai lets go a sob.

"I don't want to be your ex-boyfriend. I want to be your boyfriend. I love you and I need you. I'm still pissed about Christopher and I don't know what to do about your parents. But I'm not walking away because of them." Luke takes a big breath and stares at Lorelai trying to weigh her reaction.

Lorelai finds her voice quickly and asks "so you want a middle too?"

Luke responds firmly "I want a forever."

Lorelai deflates, like air being released from a balloon. She is suddenly exhausted, her defiant stance is gone, her eyes fill with tears, her chin trembles and her knees buckle as she has trouble standing. Lorelai moves forward and grabs onto the railing with both hands too drained to continue talking to Luke needing nothing now but sleep, "Can we talk about Chris and my parents tomorrow? Can you just stay with me and hold me and sleep with me?"

Luke nods his heads and slowly walks up the stairs and stands behind her "Yea. We can do that." He bashfully wraps his arms around her squeezing her tight and whispering into her ear "I love you." Lorelai openly sobs, turns around in his arms and buries her head into his shoulder and cries softly. Luke holds her tight with his face buried in her hair breathing in her scent vowing to himself he will learn how to talk to her. Slowly, Luke begins to guide her toward her front door; Lorelai stops looks up from his shoulder and kisses him, a slow comporting kiss. When they break apart she keeps her face close to his, strokes his left check with her hand and says "I love you too."

He hugs her tight to his chest never wanting to let her go, but finally breaks his death grip and says "Let's go inside and sleep. And we will continue this tomorrow."


End file.
